


Similarities

by Hotalando



Series: Core [16]
Category: One Piece
Genre: Awkward Conversations, Bath Houses, Canon Compliant, Caretaking, Friendship, Gen, Musing, Nakamaship, Scars, Touching
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-06
Updated: 2020-02-06
Packaged: 2021-02-28 00:27:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,141
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22584847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hotalando/pseuds/Hotalando
Summary: During a break on their way to Zou, Robin takes a bath in a calm hot spring to wash off Dressrosa for good. But her relaxing time is cut short, when a bored captain creates ripples in the water by setting new intimacy boundaries.
Relationships: Monkey D. Luffy & Nico Robin
Series: Core [16]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/870876
Comments: 6
Kudos: 69





	Similarities

**Author's Note:**

> Happy Birthday, Robin!

Pirate life can be so many things, fit into so many different kinds of adjectives as wild and unpredictable as it can be— _always_. No news to her but her own pirate life has changed quite a lot as part of the Strawhat pirates and things have started to get even messier and wilder after their encounter with Trafalgar Law in the New World. 

Not that Robin minds. Whatever will happen, will happen, and alongside this crew she will always have a little fun with it as well. In the end, they will be okay and there is only little more in the world she dares to rely on than this fact. The other are her crewmates and most of all—her captain. 

What she does mind are the few breaks in between adventurous encounters that while latter are becoming more, these free moments are very rare. She doesn’t need those pauses to recover physically—well, they all do a little—but mostly to turn the events into experiences and so, strengthen herself for future adventures. To dwell on the seen, to dive into the felt, to indulge with the successes and failures and deform mistakes into references for the upcoming. She needs these moments, these spare times to _recover_ from the past mentally. 

So she couldn’t be any happier that close to their approximated arrival at Zou, they are forced to anchor at an island that seems to mean no harm. There are natural springs filtered through the large rock formation said to contain less cursed seawater and therefore offer chances for Robin to take a bath that doesn’t prickle on her skin. A true opportunity for relaxation and calming down, finally after all these weeks she will be able to wash off Dressrosa for good. 

While the hosting crew insisted on stocking up on food and other supplies, Robin and her crewmates are free to spend the spontaneous halt the way they like. On an island with natural pools shielded by impressive temples built presumably centuries ago, there is so much to see and explore—while taking a soothing bath. Despite her burning urge to find out more about the strange island with its natural filter system for seawater, she is in need for some time-off from the ongoing party on the ship. Some quiet and a good book to read, in clear warm water in an ancient building. 

The book set aside at the edge of the pool, Robin strips off her towel and slips into the tiled pool. From the tip of her toes to the base of each hair strand she feels the water doing its work—comfortable warmth caressing her skin up to her waist, nothing prickles, nothing stings, it’s just clear, clean water that wants her to stay and rest. Its mild and natural scent fills her nose and touches her senses, a fundamental, almost primitive feeling resonating within her body, the way only a living creature’s indestroyable connection to water can do. As much as she enjoyed her daily closeness to the ocean, there is always this bitter taste along with it, this danger that interferes with her instincts. How she has missed this sensation, she may be letting down her guard now but what could possibly happen? 

The splashing of the water ripples through her senses and she instantly covers her bare breasts while turning around—focus sharp and ready for attack. Maybe she _has_ been careless.

“Oh hey, ’s you,” the intruder says and walks down the stairs, throwing away a towel on the go. Now as bare as herself, the newcomer almost floats through the light water towards her, eyes examining her from her waist up to her hairdo. “Sorry, didn’t know you were here too. I dun mean to bother you.”

She sighs and smiles a mixture of relief and embarrassment, “You never do, Luffy. I assume you were curious about these water springs as well?” 

“Yeah, kinda,” Luffy grins and slides over to the edge of the pool to put his hat aside. “I got bored too, so I walked around and discovered the baths.” He leans against the wall and settles down on the bench attached to the pool’s floor. 

“Well, I want to explore the island a little more later on, you could join me,” Robin offers with a warmer smile to hide the blush on her cheeks, hands still hiding her breasts from sight as she sits down next to him. 

“Sounds like fun!” Luffy stretches his arms out to rest on the pool’s edge, his muscled and scarred chest unprotectedly presented to any viewer’s eyes. “Torao’s freaking out that we’re anchoring here but we won’t sail on without food.” 

A chuckle vibrates in Robin’s chest and she loosens her hold around it subconsciously. Of course Trafalgar Law wouldn’t be pleased and of course Luffy would be all the happier about the little side adventure. If it just wasn’t so boring. 

“Hey you dun need to cover up, I know what women look like,” he blurts out casually, an intense gaze fixed on Robin’s tensed hold of her breasts. When the blush on her cheeks gains a few more deeper tones, he leans his head back and closes his eyes. “I’ve rushed into naked Hancock way too many times so it’s no big deal to me. Guess I’m unlucky at that.”

Unwanted shame brushes over Robin’s exposed skin causing her to shiver a little. She drops her arms and tries to relax, when his words sound again in her head. “You have grown quite attached to her,” she hears herself pushing through her lips— _what is this feeling?_

Luffy groans, “Not really. She’s so annoying and weird sometimes. And then her stupid wedding attempts. Dun really get what people see in her. She’s strong and all but that’s about it.”

“Must have been wild two years with her.” Robin disguises her true emotions as best as she can. It’s not _jealousy_ , she is certain, she is simply picky with the kind of people she wants close to her captain. 

“I was lucky that Rayleigh kept me isolated from mostly everyone,” Luffy grins with a hinge of nostalgia shadowing his features. He has grown into a young man, physically and mentally, Robin sees this change in every inch of his skin and how it has aged him visibly. Maybe, she likes watching him. 

Silence follows his words and it splits apart between them, touching each of them differently. Certain the conversation is over, Robin turns around to grab her book, some treasure she discovered on their current ship. It’s nothing spectacular but some cute little book on traditions and historical events from some island on the Grand Line. How it has ended up on that ship with _that_ crew is unclear to her but if it turned out to be good, she might snatch it away. 

Flipping through the pages and motioning to return to the previous comfortable sitting position, she feels a hand on her back and jolts up a little. “Luffy!” she exclaims, somewhat shaken from the sudden touch—and how gentle his rough hand brushes over her skin. 

“Sorry...” he mumbles but doesn’t budge, “Where’d you get these scars? There’re so many...” His voice reveals surprise over this fact, as if he has never imagined that Robin’s skin could also scar. 

Gradually the tension leaves her body along with the moving of his hand, tracing the wild arrangement of lines and curves that once distorted the skin. “From the many dangerous adventures you get us all into,” she voices a clever answer, partially to avoid the subject altogether, also because she doesn’t remember all of them. 

“Some of ’em are new—d’you get them at Dressrosa?” She doesn’t have to look to see the frown on his face as he is studying the damage to her back. Why does it matter anyway?

“Yes...” She can’t lie to him, can she? “But they’re just scratches.” Spiked balls crashing down on her flower umbrella envision in her mind. 

“Mmh,” he hums in disbelief, “Some of them are very stiff...” Hesitantly he moves his hand lower down her back, below the water’s surface and feels a scar that stretches across her tailbone and seems to be as thick as the tip of his index finger. “In those two years I’ve learned a lot about scars. The Amazons showed me how to treat them better so the skin stays flexible and soft.” 

When there’s no contra coming, Luffy starts massaging along the large scar with his thumb, applying just enough pressure to soothe the first layers of skin. “It’s better to use a brush or something like that but that’s hard on the back. Well... not for you, I guess.” A chuckle sounds from his lips

when Robin can only sit there, paralysed. Is she supposed to stop him? It’s such a kind and caring gesture, he means well and she is already drowning in an internal pool of embarrassment mixed with warmth and this sensation of someone taking care of you. She feels loved, watched over and so many other things and it’s turning her entire image of her captain upside down. However, hasn’t he always been like this, in some way?

The mood fades into pale awkwardness when Robin doesn’t respond and Luffy falls silent, obviously growing insecure about his actions. What is there for her to say? That doesn’t sound kitschy or leads this innocent, pure interaction into the opposite direction? She relaxes against the gentleness his thumb brings to the ages old scar, apparently very intensely, as she hears him sighing in relief. So he was aware of the atmosphere as well. 

Encouraged by her acceptance of his caress, Luffy shifts into a more comfortable position that leaves him also more room for better grip on Robin’s hips as he uses both thumbs to massage the scar. For some moments he focuses on the biggest scar, trying to be as efficient but also as soft as possible, before he moves up to the smaller and fresher ones. It feels strange to him—so new and thrilling—to be this close to Robin, in a situation she appears vulnerable when he knows that she isn’t. This deep and boundless trust they share is what he admires a lot, especially from a person as independent and strong as Robin. 

“Ya know,” he starts with a smile lingering in the corners of his mouth, “I’ve always liked your style of fighting a lot. It’s like mine, you also use your bare hands—well not really but you know what I mean.” Thoroughly he takes care of every scar that needs treatment, inch by inch until he considers his work done. “I’ve never thought you could get scars too... I don’t know, I never thought you could get directly hurt. I’m stupid, I know.” 

Shivering slightly from the lack of his hands, Robin turns around to look at him—as flushed and softened as she feels. “You’re not. You have trust in me that I don’t get into severe danger and I have trust in you to save me from it,” she counters softly, she doesn’t feel the control over herself that well for this moment, let alone over her hand that reaches up to brush through his pitch-black hair. As usual when he has done something meaningful to her, she wants to give something back. That justifies her own caress enough, she thinks, and so her fingers fiddle with the wild strands that fall down the side of his face, heavy from the bath water's steam. When her touch tickles the skin behind his ear, he flinches a little but the mute chuckle on his features convince her to move on. Eventually, her hand cups the side of his face while their eyes share an intense gaze.

Until Luffy’s concentration lowers out of her field of vision. “There’re a lot of scars on your neck and your shoulders, too. You should take care of them,” he says calmly, neither turning away from her touch to his cheek nor leaning into it, “Maybe Chopper knows better methods than I do. The Amazons are a wild bunch.” 

“It’s fine,” Robin chuckles and pinches his cheek affectionately, laughing a little at his played ’ouch’, “They don’t interfere with my flexibility at all. But thank you for caring.” 

“Ya welcome,” Luffy grins widely and binds her into another gaze that seeps all attention from Robin, so powerful and overwhelming, not less welcoming. She has always loved spending time with him—he is so inspiring and almost vitalising—and the one who has given her a new home, for good. 

This feeling doesn’t falter, not even when the rest of their crew noisily enters the bath. It won’t ever fade away.

**Author's Note:**

> This was interesting to write. I don't ship them but I'm fascinated by their relationship nonetheless!


End file.
